Every writer has that character, that one they encountered somewhere within the pages of another writer’s work and said “Ah-ha! I have found my literary twin.”
I was talking about this with a writing friend recently, and I’ve decided to introduce you all to my literary twin: Jo March. Perhaps you’ve heard of her. 😉 Created by Louisa May Alcott, she is featured in the literary classic, Little Women.
What is it about her I connect with so deeply? I didn’t grow up with a cohort of sisters. My father didn’t go off to war. There was no mysterious boy living next door to me. And I certainly never harbored a deep desire to live in the time of hoop skirts and corsets. I’m happy to live in a vastly different world from Jo March.
It isn’t her situation that resonates with me. It’s her personality. (more…)
For those of you who missed it or had something better to do than watch an awards show (gasp!), here’s the latter part of what he said:
“When I was 16 years old, I tried to kill myself, because I felt weird and I felt different and I felt like I did not belong. And now I’m standing here, and so I would like for this moment to be for that kid out there who feels like she’s weird or she’s different or she doesn’t fit in anywhere: yes you do. I promise you do. You do. Stay weird. Stay different. And then when it’s your turn and you are standing on this stage, please pass the same message to the next person who comes along.” (more…)
We have stairs in our house. (That seems like an odd thing to share, I’ll admit, but it’ll make more sense in a moment.) We’ve lived in this house for over two and a half years now, and I’ve gone up and down the stairs multiple times a day.
Suffice it to say, I’ve had a lot of experience with those stairs.
And yet, some days, as I’m running up the stairs, I have a moment—a strange moment when there’s a shadow or the light flickers and my brain goes “Where’s the next step?!” (more…)